


Moments

by WintersIce



Category: Hololive, Virtual Streamer Animated Characters
Genre: Creative License, F/F, Fluff, How did I End up Here?, Humor, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tsundere
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:22:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28212330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WintersIce/pseuds/WintersIce
Summary: They've known each other for so many centuries, being eternal beings and all. Between the past and the present, the reaper and phoenix were bound to have many moments together. Some happy, some sad, but always together.A collection of Takamori stories.
Relationships: Mori Calliope/Takanashi Kiara
Comments: 19
Kudos: 284





	1. Heater

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been floating around so many ideas for this ship, I figured to might as well make a small collection of cute moments because who doesn’t like fluff? Disclaimer! I’m only writing for the anime characters that happen to currently be VTubers, not the real people behind them.

Winters in the human world were not something to be trifled with. Sure, the Underworld had sections blanketed by ice and snow, but at least there, the body of a reaper could get by. A reaper could still feel the frigid air against their skin, but a heavier cloak would do the job for the most part. Human bodies, on the other hand, were a completely separate thing. It was as if a single burst of winter air could invade their bodies and freeze everything it came into contact with. Add snow around their feet or on their head, well, they might as well give up and let the snow cover them up.

 _How do humans go out in this weather and not freeze? It’s so cold. You won’t get any big ups from me weather!_ thought the reaper on hiatus, Calliope. She had been roped into a “date,” as the bird would put it, that she was most definitely not dressed for. At first, she believed the meet up was to talk business and then some fun chit-chat, hence her choosing her trusty coat and a simple t-shirt and jeans. Unfortunately for Calli, it turned into an outdoor excursion that lasted a few hours. They went around the shopping district, saw some festive decorations, and snacked on some sweets from a few outdoor vendors. Kiara tried to hold hands with Calliope, but she did not allow that to fly to the bird’s disappointment. Even so, it didn’t feel like multiple hours had passed at all; it felt like it was only a mere twenty minutes. What she had felt though, was the accursed cold that she couldn’t shake off no matter how far or fast they had walked.

Rather than returning to the Underworld, Calli found herself in the entrance hallway of Kiara’s apartment. The phoenix had already removed her beige winter coat and placed it in the closet near the front door, but she retained her matching beret. She was as bouncy as usual, and it seemed that the cold didn’t bother her much. It probably helped that Kiara wore an appropriate red sweater and thick leggings underneath her black skirt. Even in her human body, she retained a natural warmth that an actual human could never produce in such weather. A shade of pink could be spotted on her cheeks, and a couple of snowflakes were entangled in her fluffy hair. Somehow, they hadn’t melted upon contact. Unfortunately for Calli, she had no such built-in warmth to protect herself.

“Calli?” spoke Kiara as she turned to face the reaper, who had not moved an inch.

“Aren’t you going to take your coat off and come in more? You don’t have anywhere else to go, right?”

“I don’t,” replied Calli reluctantly as she lowered her gaze. She would miss the warmth from the fluffy lining inside of her long black coat. Sure, it wasn’t like the apartment was frozen over and wouldn’t be enough to warm her up, but she would prefer the coat. She just needed a little more to fight off the winter chill that had invaded her weak body.

“Great!” cheered Kiara as she clapped her hands together as a bright smile overtook her features.

“Take your coat off and take it easy! You wanna watch something on Netflix? There is this new series I watched recently I could show you! It’s so good!”

“That sounds fine,” replied Calliope, who began to ponder if she could get away with wearing her coat for a bit more. As she began to walk closer to Kiara, the bird gave off a small pout. Rather than speaking, Kiara bounced in front of Calli and reached her hand up toward the reaper’s throat. In one swift motion, she unzipped her coat.

“H-huh?! Wait, what are you doing?!” shouted Calli as she instinctively pulled back.

“I said to stay awhile Calli! Let me get this for you! You’re my precious guest after all!” she spoke cheerfully as she quickly removed Calli’s coat and skipped to the closet to politely hang it up.

Calliope was reminded how fast Kiara could be and felt the need to protest, but all she allowed out of her mouth was a small grumble. Without her coat, the heat that had gathered around her chest had vanished. The apartment did feel somewhat warm, but not to the extent she desired. Kiara then quickly bounced back to Calli, her arms swaying with her movement. A few flakes of snow still miraculously clung to her hair, but the shade of pink had faded from her cheeks. Soon, the snow would fade away from her natural warmth.

“Come on Calli, let’s go to my room…hold on. I should get us some drinks first! I don’t have any wine, but I do have hot and iced tea. Oh, oh! How about some hot chocolate?” asked Kiara happily as she raised a finger to her soft-looking bottom lip. She then turned her head to her side, which caused her hair to sway.

“I’m not in the mood for a cold drink, so I’ll take some hot chocolate,” replied Calli, who sighed internally. It was a good thing Kiara had something warm, if she wanted to freeze herself, she’d just frolic in the snow or something. A hot drink would help, but she couldn’t shake the desire for something warmer. Something akin to an army of feathery blankets, or to flop herself in front of a heater.

“Okie dokie, two hot chocolates coming right up!” said Kiara enthusiastically as she nodded quickly. Her hair danced again, and the remaining snow had finally vanished. The cold had nothing on a hyperactive phoenix…

“Hold on,” spoke Calli aloud as an idea suddenly sprang into her mind.

“Huh?” replied Kiara, who had stopped before she could scurry over to her kitchen nook.

 _The warmest possible thing in this apartment is Kiara, all I have to do is reach out to her. Why didn’t I think of this sooner?_ thought Calli as she lightly bit on her bottom lip.

A hyperactive, bubbly, and affectionate phoenix was the perfect cure to kick the cold out of her bones. All Calli had to do was move her body, wrap her arms around Kiara, snuggle into her personal space, and absorb her heat. That wouldn’t be weird, right? Calli had been hugged by Kiara far too many times to keep count. After so many centuries, she accepted the affection, even if she’d keep it to herself. At times, Calli would yearn for the other girl’s affection. Not like she’d actually say it out loud, of course, she knew she was much too stubborn to say it.

“What is it Calli? Change your mind?” asked Kiara as she locked eyes with her companion.

Rather than responding, Calli simply moved forward with a stern face. They were in private, no one could see them, and as long as Kiara kept her mouth shut no one would ever have to know. Calli was allowed to give her a hug, friends were permitted to do so. It was nothing to be embarrassed about. It was just a simple, platonic, friendly hug to help Calli fight off the cold.

With a few steps, Calli was able to hover over Kiara, who couldn’t respond any other way than by blushing as she tensed her body. Calli then wrapped her arms around the phoenix’s waist gently, pulled her in tightly, lowered her head slightly, and then snuggled her face into Kiara’s shoulder. As expected, she was very warm and the sweater was rather soft. From the contact, Calli felt Kiara’s body temperature rise and intertwine with her own.

“Huh? Huh?! Haaaaa?! Calli?! Wait? What?! Why are you?!” stammered Kiara. Despite being so forward with her own affection, she would get easily embarrassed by any type of affection from Calli. The reaper had thought it was odd, but couldn’t help but think her reactions were a little cute. Kiara was definitely, without a doubt, blushing even more from the hug.

“I’m cold, so, umm,” began Calliope, who tried her best to keep a steady voice and to not allow any hints of embarrassment to seep out, “I know you’re always warm. So, I want a…hug.”

She knew far too well just how warm Kiara was. When they initially met, Calli wanted nothing to do with that warmth, but after so long, she would gladly interact with it. For her to say it aloud though, was still tough for her. Kiara’s personality, kindness, determination, dedication, it was all so warm. Why would Calli need to bother with an intimate object to help heat her body when the warmest thing in her existence was already in front of her?

“You’re allowed to have as many hugs as you want Calli! I’ll always be here to warm you up,” giggled Kiara after a few seconds. She then wrapped her arms around Calli’s back, “Maybe next time don’t surprise me though! You’re gonna have my heart burst out of my chest! I don’t want to die and be sent to a different dimension from you and the rest of the girls!”

“If that does happen next time, Death-sensei will just send you back here so you don’t have anything to worry about,” retorted Calli. Her teacher did promise to make an exception due to their current occupation in the case of sudden death.

“Ohhh, are you planning on hugging me a lot now?” giggled Kiara as she started to nuzzle Calli’s head. Her hair tickled Calli’s cheek, and even from that, she could feel Kiara’s warmth.

“Guh,” replied Calli, who realized she had talked herself into a trap, “I’m not going to make a habit out of this Kusotori. I’m just cold and I know you’re the fastest way to warm up. I won’t go out of my way to hug you every time we see each other as you do.”

“Booooo! Guess I just need to take you out on more outdoor dates to make you need my phoenix warmth,” spoke Kiara happily as she began to rub Calli’s back gently.

Calli allowed a sigh to escape her mouth, “If you insist on hanging out outside, which is not a date by the way, at least tell me first. I’ll dress appropriately next time. I enjoy your company, but hanging out and going on a date are two different things.”

“You can say it’s not a date, but it’ll always be a date in my heart!” retorted Kiara happily as she began to nuzzle Calli’s head some more.

Rather than responding, Calli decided to enjoy the contact as she allowed her eyes to close. Kiara’s warmth was comforting, and it was doing a great job at kicking out the accursed cold. In no time the chill that circulated inside her body would cease to exist. Despite that, she didn’t want to separate immediately. Kiara was certainly much better than any blanket or heater. Something about the silence, soft breathing, and her soothing warmth could put Calli to sleep if they weren’t standing.

“Hey, Calli?” spoke up Kiara in a gentle tone, who had given up on the nuzzles and decided to just lay her head against Calli’s.

“Yeah?” responded the reaper, who felt herself becoming a bit groggy.

“I love you,” declared the phoenix softly.

“You really just had to say that, huh?” replied Calli. She was accustomed to the hyper variant of Kiara asserting her love. Calli could vividly remember the time so many centuries ago where she had climbed atop of a house just to shout out those words. Which she then proceeded to fall off because of course, she did. The soft variant of Kiara was different. No semantics, no silliness, no shouting. It was the same words, but the way it struck a chord with Calli was different. She couldn’t prevent the emotions of those words, like Kiara’s warmth, to interlace with her own being.

“Of course! It’s the truth after all!” giggled the phoenix.


	2. Encounter

“Calli? Calli?! Where’d you go?” shouted Kiara as she walked down the busy street in the local shopping district. People snuggled into their winter coats surrounded her on all sides. Some were mothers with a hyper child in toe, while others were groups of chatty teenagers. Among them were businessmen heading home, some carrying take-out as they chatted on the phone, while others bore a solemn expression. Snow was piled up on top of the buildings that surrounded her, but none had fallen out of the overcast sky. It had gradually gotten colder as the day went on, and before she knew it, the dim light would fade and transform into the evening.

Kiara had successfully convinced the reaper to go out on another date. She didn’t say “date” when she had asked Calli out, but Kiara couldn’t contain herself when they had met up earlier that day. She giggled it out with a bright smile a few times, which resulted in some grumbles from her companion who proceeded to lightly bonk Kiara on her forehead. Calli was properly dressed for their outing; she wore a thick gray sweater with small gems around the collar and jeans. She brought along her trusty coat, and a somewhat small pink scarf. As for herself, Kiara wore a black skirt with thick leggings, an orange sweater, and her beige winter coat and matching beret.

They met up for food and ended up just walking around town while stopping at different stores. They did more window shopping than anything else, citing that neither of them wanted to carry too many things. Kiara did take note of some cute clothes that she could always order online. Calli bought a CD from some rap artist, which Kiara kindly offered to carry in her orange purse. Calliope had originally declined, but after some coaxing, handed the CD over with a small blush on her cheeks.

The two were going to wrap up their window shopping and head off to dinner when Kiara got distracted at a little knick-knack shop. Rather than looking with her, Calli had gone off ahead to go buy some warm drinks for the two of them. Kiara spent about twenty-some minutes in the shop before coming out with a small bird figurine which she snuggled safely next to the CD. Once she left the store, she wiggled her head around to look for Calliope. She waited for about eight minutes before she pulled out her phone from her coat pocket and called her. All she got was the voice mail. She messaged her a few times but never received a reply.

It was at that point she started to walk around the outdoor area as she called out Calli’s name. A wave of concern began to gnaw at her stomach, but she did her best to tell it to shut up. The likelihood of a powerful reaper being taken down by some weak human was ludicrous. Even in her human body, she could easily destroy an attacker, and whatever friends they brought along. She probably got distracted by something, but the feeling in the phoenix’s stomach continued to annoy her. She rationalized there was nothing to worry about, but her body didn’t want to listen to her words. It was Calliope, after all, she could take care of herself no problem.

“How hard is it to find a tall, gorgeous, pink-haired reaper?” mumbled Kiara as she continued to walk around and survey the area. She had to be around somewhere; she wouldn’t ditch Kiara. Calli had joked about doing such a thing, but never once did she act upon it. The people around her didn’t match the description what-so-ever. They were so, plain, in comparison.

Kiara pulled her phone out of her coat pocket once more and saw no messages on the lock screen. She unlocked it and called again, but received no answer. She returned her phone as she started to pick up her pace as she continued to examine the people around the shopping area. Too many normal looking humans that could easily blend into the crowd, and not a single pink-haired beauty. 

It wasn’t until she nearly reached the exit of the area that she spotted what she was looking for. To her left in an alley between two large buildings, was a familiar coat and head of long silky hair, who was squatting down for whatever reason. A sigh of relief exited Kiara’s lips, as the concern in her stomach began to fade. She knew there was nothing to worry about, but it would have been nice for Calli to answer her phone.

Kiara began to walk over to Calli but moved to her right to get a better view of what she was doing. Thanks to the angle, she was able to see a small feline with a collar around its neck. It had splotches of light and dark brown fur mixed together, and it looked to be a healthy weight. The kitten purred into Calli’s hand for attention as she gently petted the creature’s face.

“Meow meow to you too little buddy,” spoke Calli, who bore a gentle expression. Her eyes looked lively as she gladly petted the small creature. The more the kitten nuzzled into her hand, the more she’d talk back to it and occasionally giggled.

“It’s too cold for you out here, I need to get you back home where it’s warm,” spoke Calli as she moved her hand to rub the kitten’s back. The furball didn’t like the petting position, which caused the kitten to move backward so Calli’s hand would meet its face again. She giggled lightly as she continued to oblige in the kitten’s desire for some face pats.

“… _bezaubernd_ ,” mumbled Kiara as she watched the _adorable_ interaction between Calli and the kitten. She felt as though a bunch of small hearts would appear above her head as she sensed her own heart swell due to the scene. She knew Calli was a fellow cat person, but whenever Kiara had the chance to watch the reaper interact with a feline, it was a wondrous moment. Calli allowed herself to drop the serious look on her face and act like a total cutie.

Kiara proceeded to bounce her way to Calli’s back and lightly tapped her right shoulder as she giggled out, “Someone sure is being cute with the super-duper cute wittle kitty, meow meow! I wanna pet the kitty too!”

Calli jerked her back and quickly turned her very much flushed face up to Kiara, “Kusotori?! When did you get here?! Shouldn’t you still be shopping?!”

“Well, you weren’t in front of the shop when I finished up. I waited a little bit for you, but you never showed so I started to worry about you,” explained the phoenix as she bounced to Calli’s side so she could squat as well, “I called and messaged you, but you never picked up. So, I went to search for you and now I found you being super cute playing with a cute kitty. So, a lot of surprise cuteness after all the worry.”

Calliope sighed as she lowered her head yet continued to pet the cat, “Guh, I’m so sorry for worrying you, Kiara. I was on my way to the vending machine when I heard some meows. Then the kitten appeared and umm, I followed after it. I was curious so I ended up searching for it so I kind of, got distracted as you can see. I have my phone silenced so I didn’t notice it at all.”

Kiara imagined the situation, and couldn’t hold in her giggles at the thought of Calli, tossing away her mission for drinks so she could trot cutely after the kitten. She would have loved to see the shift in her expression when she spotted the kitten. It was a shame she didn’t get to, but at least she got to see her meowing and being adorable.

“You’re such a cutie Calli,” spoke Kiara cheerfully as she raised her own hand outwards and started to pet the surprisingly warm kitten on the back, “Meow meow to my little friend and my dear Calli!”

“Guh, shut up Kusotori,” grumbled Calli, whose cheeks retained that pinkish hue, as she turned her attention away from the phoenix.

The kitten didn’t seem fazed at all by her appearance. It looked happier than before thanks to the double pets its body was receiving. The fur was soft, and upon a closer look, she noticed it was well maintained, without any hair missing or red splotches on the skin. There was also a small tag on the collar, with the name, “Mocha,” printed on it along with an address and the name of some bookstore.

“Aww, Mocha, that’s a cute name. She has to belong to some bookshop owner based on the name tag,” spoke Kiara as she continued to pamper the cat. It had been a long time since she last had a cat to dote upon, and she was loving every minute of it. She would have a collection of feline friends in her apartment if she could.

“Huh? Mocha? Name tag? What are you talking about Kusotori?” asked Calli as she turned her head back to Kiara with a confused glare.

“The name tag? You know, on the collar? It’s dangling right there, on her neck,” explained Kiara as she used her free hand to point out the object.

Calliope dropped her head and fixated her sight on the kitten’s neck. She pulled the hand away that was giving the kitten lots of love, and just stared intently at the creature. Her face twisted into disbelief when she finally returned her gaze to Kiara, “I didn’t even notice it was there.”

Cue many giggles from Kiara that prevented her from petting the kitten further. She couldn’t believe that Calli missed such an obvious thing right in front of her face. Even she noticed it right away from afar, so how did Calli completely miss it? She was aware that Calli could miss some obvious stuff from their experiences playing board games, but that was just too much. It was so silly, and she couldn’t contain her laughter at the reaper’s expense.

“I can’t believe it. I’m so dumb,” replied Calli in a somewhat loud, annoyed tone as she slammed her hands onto her knees, “Right there, right in front of me, and I didn’t see it. How did I manage to do that?! I’m not blind, I swear!”

“No idea Calli, none at all,” spoke Kiara as she began to contain her laughter, “I think you’d look great in glasses though. Want to try some next time? I could pick out a sexy pair for you!”

“Now look here you, quit that,” replied Calli as she dropped her gaze back to the kitten who hadn’t budged an inch, “We need to look up that address and take her home.”

“Totally,” replied Kiara as she nodded her head, “House cats shouldn’t be roaming around in a busy place like this to begin with, much less when it’s cold. She could get sick or hurt, or eat something she shouldn’t.”

Calliope nodded before she reached out and picked up the kitten gently. Mocha didn’t fight her and allowed Calli to pull her into her arms for safe transport. The reaper proceeded to stand up and kept her eyes focused on the kitten.

“Awww, I wanted to carry her,” spoke Kiara before she stood up.

Kiara proceeded to check the address on the kitten’s name tag, and then pulled up the directions on her phone. The shop was a few blocks away, and it wouldn’t take them long to reach their destination. As they made their way through the thinning crowd of people, the remaining light in the sky began to fade away.

They were close to their destination when Mocha began to meow a lot. Thankfully, she didn’t try to wiggle out of Calli’s arms nor did she sound like she was crying. Kiara guessed she recognized the location and was happy to be almost home.

“Meow meow meow,” giggled Kiara as she gazed up to her companion, “Come on Calli, meow with us! It’s fun!”

Calliope let out a small huff as her face turned a light shade of pink. She started to survey the area by turning her head to her left, then her right, before responding, “Meow meow meow.”

That promoted even more giggles from Kiara, who was surprised she went through with it without a single complaint. The two continued to meow with the kitten, though Kiara was more enthusiastic about it until they entered the bookstore. An older woman greeted them before realizing what Calli had snuggled into her arms.

“Mocha!” squeaked the woman, “You got out again?! Such a naughty kitten you are. If you keep escaping you won’t be allowed down here anymore.”

Calli lightly chuckled as she lowered herself to the floor before she allowed Mocha out of her arms. The kitten scurried over to her owner and started to nuzzle her leg affectionately. Kiara giggled at the sight as she continued to smile.

“Thank you for bringing her back, ladies. Let me get you two a little something.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” spoke Calli with a gentle smile as she waved her hand, “We’re just happy she’s back home. Right, Kiara?”

“Yup!” she responded while nodding enthusiastically, “The pets we gave her was more than enough of a reward!”

The woman chuckled, “Well if you two insist.”

Kiara and Calli gave their farewells after some final pats for Mocha and a minor tangent from Kiara. She couldn’t help herself but talk about how well the kitten was being cared for and cat stuff in general. It only took what, twenty minutes? Calli joined in too but left most of the talking to Kiara. The sky had faded into the night while they were chatting inside, and once they made it out on the street, there were even fewer people. The two decided to make their way to the restaurant as originally planned. Kiara was content with swaying her arms lightly as she walked, while Calli had her hands buried into her coat pockets.

“I feel lonely already without Mocha already. I wish I could have carried her, but you beat me to her!” spoke Kiara as she gazed up at Calli, “Though, you were so gentle and loving with her. It was really cute Calli.”

“Well yeah, I didn’t want her to run off and get lost again. I wanted her to get home safely, and I do like cats and all,” responded Calli without turning to face Kiara.

“To be honest, I wish you’d carry me like that some time,” giggled Kiara as she started to daydream, “I’d be safe in your arms, and you’d get me back home without any worries.”

Calliope shifted her head so she could give Kiara a stern glare, “I am not carrying you Kusotroi. You’re walking perfectly fine, and you aren’t a cold and lost kitten.”

“I know, but a phoenix can dream, right?” replied Kiara as she beamed her trademark smile at Calli. She watched as the reaper’s face softened before she dropped her gaze to the ground.

“Calli?” asked Kiara in a soft voice, “Something wrong? Do you miss Mocha too?”

Calli looked up from the concrete with the same soft expression, “Well, a little, but…”

Kiara turned her head to her side curiously as she closely watched Calli. Their eyes met for a moment before Calli looked away again as she started to fidget with her right arm which was to Kiara’s left. Calli began to pull her arm out, which created a gap between her arm and her side.

“I won’t carry you since you’re perfectly capable of doing it yourself, but you can, hold onto my arm. Only if you want to since, well, you’re bummed you didn’t get to hold Mocha. I’m not soft or fluffy like her, but I’m still something to hold onto.”

Kiara couldn’t believe her ears as her face began to shade a bright red. Calli just offered for them to walk arm in arm? She didn’t hit her head or anything, right? She usually refused when Kiara asked to do anything along those lines together. Despite the embarrassment flying about in her stomach, she quickly wrapped her arm through the small opening and snuggled into Calli’s side.

Kiara felt her stiffen at the initial contact but relaxed after a few seconds. Calli’s gaze was still settled on anything besides her, but she knew they’d make eye contact sooner rather than later. The reaper had started to want physical contact, which Kiara took as a sign that Calli was finally coming around. Now if she’d accept the phoenix’s love which was an entirely different battle.

“Hey, Kiara?” asked Calli as she finally allowed herself to make eye contact with the phoenix.

“Yeah?” she responded while noting her face was adorably flushed once more.

“I had fun today, so umm…thanks for inviting me out. Also, thanks for the warmth, I’m kind of cold.”

“I had a ton of fun too,” responded Kiara as she started to nuzzle Calli’s shoulder, “Consider me your personal heater! Maybe next time we should find a place together up here so we can have a lot of cats! It’d be as if we were married!”

“That is not happening. Ever,” replied the reaper. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally had a different idea for this chapter but after some random inspiration, I decided Takamori + cat was more important. Hope it was enjoyable~


	3. Visit

Calliope found herself examining the same Discord conversation over and over on her phone. She was comfortably stretched out on top of her bed, clothed in her skull-themed pajamas. Her long pink hair was sprawled out in all directions and was in desperate need of being brushed. The dark purple and white covers were pushed away from her body, but her head laid contently on the soft pillow as she stared up at the device. 

She had stayed up till the early hours of that day working on her latest piece of music. The reaper was determined to complete it that day no matter how long it took nor how sleep-deprived she got. It was a good thing she had the day scheduled as a break, or she would have likely been totally out of it. Calliope was still getting accustomed to her human form, and found it strange how her body responded when she hadn’t slept in what, 24 hours? It would start to slow down on her, which made her mind a hazy mess. If she had retained her reaper form, she wouldn’t have needed sleep for at least a few days.

Once she had successfully finished it to her liking, she went straight to bed without a care in the world. It was well into the afternoon when she awoke, and a part of her urged herself to discard the rest of the day and sleep it away. That was before she reached out to her phone and decided to browse through her social media. At first, it was the normal feed of fanart, stream announcements, or shenanigans from the fellow members. She then noticed one post which was an apology tweet from Kiara. Apparently, she started to feel ill during her stream and tried her best to fight through it. After about two hours, it became too much for the phoenix, and she had no other choice but to end the stream for the day.

That prompted Calli to check their group chat, where her fellow EN members were sending their best regards to Kiara. Ina told her to take it easy and try to rest. Amelia joked that perhaps one of her concoctions could help cure her of whatever was plaguing her. Gura piped in that, no matter what the detective said about the health improvement concoctions, it was best to avoid it at all cost. It apparently wasn’t worth the annoying side effects. The small shark didn’t explain exactly why she knew about it, but it appeared no one wanted to ask why. Amelia came off a tad defensive about the statement, but the conversation died down soon after that. The most recent message was from about an hour ago, where Kiara sent a sad emoji while complaining about how she felt like crap, and how she wished someone would take care of her.

After seeing that message, Calli couldn’t stop her mind from conjuring up a thought. She was informed not that long ago that certain foods would help out the body of a sick individual. Due to nutrients being in higher demand than usual, food packed with vitamins, minerals, calories, and proteins would be the best for the person. Sure, a phoenix in her human form was a tad different than an average human, but the reaper assumed that they were close enough.

“I could just sleep the rest of the day or...” she mumbled to herself as she reread Kiara’s latest message for at least the fourteenth time.

Calli pulled the phone away from her face as she sighed, and then dropped her arm to her bed. She closed her eyes and images of Kiara’s face flashed before her. Even in her mind, the phoenix wore a radiant smile that could brighten up anyone’s day. Another, much stranger thought, began to swirl around Calliope’s mind. It was something that, of course, she had no reason to partake in. She had absolutely, no reason at all, to remove herself from her soft bed and not sleep the remainder of the day away. It wasn’t like she was asked to do anything, and there was no purpose for her to use her precious downtime on anyone else. She deserved a break after working so hard after all!

While she tried to reason with herself as to why she shouldn’t leave her home and travel upstairs to where the living resided, her gut nagged at her. It twisted and turned as if scolding her for attempting to deny her true feelings. It wanted her to go and participate in an activity that didn’t need her. Even if she tried to force herself to go back to sleep, she knew that Kiara’s face wouldn’t vacate her mind. It was hard to not want to help someone she cared about, even if she tried to deny it on multiple occasions.

“Guh,” she mumbled to herself as she pulled herself out of her bed, “Guess I should get dressed.”  


* * *

Calliope found herself standing in front of Kiara’s front door, with both of her hands holding plastic bags. Two were in her left hand, while one in her right. She was snuggled in her typical long, black coat, her neck wrapped with a somewhat small pink scarf. Her face felt fairly flushed, and she couldn’t wait to get inside to warm up her body. She had spent at least an hour and a half running around getting things for the sick phoenix. Calliope couldn’t help but feel like she had gone overboard in her desire to help out Kiara. Rather than partaking in a fruitless argument with herself over her complicated feelings, she decided to just listen to them and go all out.

Kiara, of course, wasn’t aware of any of the things Calli had done. She knew she could have informed the bird ahead of time, or asked what she needed, but Calli wanted it to be a small surprise. For whatever reason, she was looking forward to the cute reaction she was sure the phoenix would give her the moment they made eye contact.

She placed the bag in her right hand down on the ground next to her before she stretched out her hand and knocked on the door four times. It was possible Kiara was asleep, but Calli had a feeling she would be awake. The bird had enough difficulty sleeping on a regular basis, so she doubted a cold would change much about that. On the off chance she was, well, the reaper would just head home and wait till Kiara awoke to drop off the things.

Fortunately for Calliope, it only took a few minutes for the front door to open. Kiara was wearing a pair of long-sleeved pajamas, which was a mix of light and dark orange. They were somewhat frilly and looked cute on her. Her hair was well cared for per usual, but she wasn’t wearing any of her trademark hats. Her cheeks looked a little rosy. Calli wasn’t sure if it was due to the cold or because she was happily surprised. Kiara’s magenta eyes seemed to sparkle the moment they made eye contact as a tiny smile formed on her features.

“Calli?” spoke Kiara, whose voice sounded slightly rough “Why are you here?”

“Can I come in first before we talk? It’s cold out here,” she replied as she reached down for the other bag.

Kiara, without saying anything, nodded her head a few times before she scurried to the side of the door to make room. Calli walked inside the apartment, and once the door was firmly closed behind her, she stretched her arms out to Kiara. She took the bags without asking what was inside of them, but she couldn’t help but turn her head in confusion as she stared intently at them. Calli proceeded to remove her shoes and coat, which revealed the comfy black sweater she was wearing. She knew where to hang the coat up, she had been to the apartment more times than she was willing to admit aloud. As she walked over to the closet, Kiara walked past her and made her way to her small dining area on the left side of the room. The room was divided into two parts, the small kitchen at one end and the dining table on the other.

“Uhhh,” began Kiara as she placed the bags on the table, “What’s all this for? I don’t think I asked you for anything? Or did I?”

“They’re for you, but no, you didn’t ask me for anything,” replied Calli as she walked over to Kiara, “I saw how you had to stop streaming earlier because you started to feel sick. So, I wanted to get some stuff for you so you wouldn’t have to. It’s better for sick people to stay at home and rest, right?”

“Aww, Calli,” replied Kiara cheerfully with a sweet smile as her face turned a deeper red, “You’re such a sweetie! You didn’t have to do this, you know? I’m not that sick, but aww, this is so cute! You’re so cute! Thank you!”

For someone who was sick, she certainly was energetic like usual. Calli felt her face heat up a bit but she did her best to keep eye contact, “I just wanted to help you out. Don’t get any weird ideas about this Kusotori! I just wanted to help you, since, well, you’re a good friend!”

“Ehehe, whatever you say Calli. Now then, let’s see what you got me,” responded Kiara as she lowered her gaze to the plastic bags. She raised her hands and started to pull out the items inside. It didn’t take long for Kiara to start giggling as she went through the contents of the first two bags. One after another, she pulled out similar looking items from a pharmacy.   
  
“Calli dear, what _is_ all this?” she asked as she attempted to settle down the giggles, but before she could, a few coughs escaped.  


The table was covered with an assortment of cold medicines, some liquid, some tablets. They varied in brand, and in usage. Some were meant for a sinus cold, others for a stomach bug, and a few were for an average cold. Calli had contemplated calling someone about what was best to cure the ailments suffered by sick humans, and people who happened to have a human form. She was still learning about the human world, after all, so she wasn’t aware of what was the best for what. Despite considering the option, she found herself embarrassed at the mere thought of one of her friends teasing her over wanting to get something to help Kiara. Even if she tried to lie her way around the question, she knew they’d figure out why she was asking about medicines. It didn’t help that Calli had no idea what was wrong with Kiara.

“Well, umm,” she began before she turned her head away from Kiara’s as she felt a small blush taking hold of her face, “Your boy here didn’t know what was the best to help you with your cold. I don’t even know what’s exactly wrong with you. So, I figured to get a little bit of everything, so at least something here should help you out. Hopefully anyway.”

Kiara started to giggle even more as she tried her best not to cough, “That’s so silly Calli, you could have just asked me! Did the clerk ask you why you needed all of this medicine?”

“Yeah, the dude gave me a funny look,” explained Calli as she continued to keep her gaze away from Kiara’s, “After I gave him a signature reaper glare, he stopped his questioning.”

In retrospect, perhaps giving the poor man a glare that could send one’s soul to the Underworld without needing a scythe was a bit much. She wasn’t in the mood to argue about the medicine and wanted to get it done as soon as possible so she could assist Kiara. She could have asked the employee for assistance, but again, she didn’t know Kiara's symptoms to begin with. She should have just messaged the bird, but her stubbornness stopped her, but that wasn’t anything new.

“That must have been scary,” responded Kiara which prompted Calli to return her gaze to the bird.

“Yeah, I went a bit overboard,” spoke Calli as she watched Kiara look over the labels, “Can you use any of them?”

“Yeah, I just have an average cold, so this medicine right here will be enough,” answered Kiara as she raised up a liquid container that mentioned it was good for controlling coughs and irritated throats.

“Okay, good. Glad at least something here will help you get better,” responded Calli as she looked over all the medicines on the table. She had no idea what would become of the rest of them, but she was fine with Kiara keeping them all. She could use them down the road.

After Kiara was finished inspecting the variety of medicine, along with more giggles intertwined with small coughs, she started to put away the ones she wasn’t currently in need of. What ended up remaining on the table was the previously chosen cough medicine, along with some pills to help with her sinuses. Kiara placed the bags to the side before she began to inspect the final bag. She pulled out a medium-sized container with two slices of bread wrapped up on top of it.

“You got me soup?” asked Kiara as she placed the container down, and removed the bread from the lid.

“Yup, chicken noodle soup to be precise, since you love your chickens so much,” began Calli before she started to grin and lowly chuckle to herself, “I learned that this type of soup is good for people when they get sick. That it fills you up with the stuff important for human body maintenance and whatnot. So, I made sure to find the place with the best soup to make sure it was effective on your human form.”

“Calli, how many places did you look up?” asked Kiara in a light tone. The silly giggles and happy smiles become much softer.

“Twelve different places. I read all the reviews to see which place had the best soup. I even looked up a few articles about the restaurants to see how their soup ranked. After a sufficient investigation, I concluded the soup before you would be the best to help you feel better,” she declared proudly as she nodded her head a few times.

“You went through all that effort, just because you wanted to find the best soup to help me?” asked Kiara as her face flushed a bright red. Calli couldn’t help but notice how serene her face looked, and her eyes once more glistened.

“Indeed,” replied Calli as she flashed a smug smile. It was indeed, silly, to go through all the effort she did just for medicine and a container of soup. She enjoyed it though and was happy that she was able to do something for her friend. Her gut was no longer annoying her but was content with her actions. 

“You always care so much Calli, even though you usually try to hide it,” responded Kiara before soft giggles emerged from her lips, “You’re such a sweetheart. No wonder I love you so much.”

“Guh,” responded Calli as she walked up to the table and grabbed the soup container. Her gut was far more than just content at the declaration, but she did her best to keep her facial appearance under control. She had found it harder to control her reaction to those sweet words in recent weeks.

“Don’t go making this weird K-Kusotori. Now you take a seat, I’ll take care of this for you,” she said as she made her way over to the kitchen section of the room.

“You’re just proving my point,” teased Kiara cheerfully as the sound of a chair moving reverberated.

“Shush,” was her only reply as she started the warm up process. Calli knew the layout of the kitchen well, so she had no issue finding the bowls, cups, and silverware. While she was warming up the soup, she delivered a cup of water and a spoon to the phoenix. She would occasionally cough, but she was preoccupied with her teasing of the reaper.

Once the soup was heated, Calli brought the bowl and placed it in front of Kiara. She then took the seat across from her as Calli observed her actions. Her face retained a slight hue, but the sparkle in her eyes never left her. She grabbed the utensil, dipped it into the warm liquid, and then proceeded to lightly blow on it. After she was done with that, she took her first mouthful of the food.

“Oh, this is good!” she said before she took another spoonful, “Feels great on my poor throat. You need to show me where this is from.”

“Sure, after you’re done eating. I don’t need you getting soup on my phone,” replied Calli with a soft chuckle as she raised her left arm so she could rest her face into the palm of her hand.

“Hey! I wouldn’t do that!” retorted Kiara with a small but cute pout.

“Sure, sure you wouldn’t. You aren’t a klutz or anything,” teased Calli, as a way to get back at her for earlier.

Rather than responding, Kiara went back to eating her soup with the same small pout. Despite the unfortunate circumstance that brought Calli to the phoenix’s abode, she was enjoying her time. Thankfully, it seemed whatever was ailing Kiara wasn’t enough to diminish her natural energy and cheery attitude. She was fun, as usual, to be around, but she wouldn’t dare say that to Kiara’s face. 

“Calli Calli,” spoke Kiara after she finished another spoonful of her meal.

“Yeah?”

Kiara held out the spoon to the reaper, and with a small giggle that wasn’t interrupted by coughing asked, “Can you feed me?”

“H-Hey! You were feeding yourself perfectly fine just seconds ago!” responded Calli as she stared at Kiara’s jolly face.

Kiara didn’t reply, but she continued to wiggle the spoon at Calli with soft eyes. The reaper watched as she waved the utensil, and she felt something twirling around her gut. Rather than telling that feeling to screw off, she hesitantly reached out and grabbed the spoon. Kiara looked surprised by the action, and before she could say anything, Calli already dunked it into the broth. 

“Just this once, got it?” spoke Calli as she felt a small blush tickle her cheeks as she stared gently at Kiara.

“O-okay,” she said lightly as her eyes darted between Calli’s face and the spoon.

Calli slowly brought the spoon to Kiara, who stared at it before she closed her mouth around it. After she had eaten the portion, Calli removed the utensil and placed it back inside of the bowl. It was such a silly thing to do, and it was a good way, to sum up, her day. Silly upon silly, all for the sake of the being that sat in front of her with a nearly as silly grin spreading over her face. She even started to make little squeaks before another cough crept upon her.

“What are you so happy about?” asked Calli as she returned her chin to her palm.

“You being such a doting wife,” responded Kiara with a mischievous voice. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what ya think? I was going to have something else for this chapter, but a friend asked for a sick Kiara one so tada. I'm a bit iffy on this one, but I hope it was still a fun read! Dork Calli is a ton of fun to write.


	4. Snuggle

The sun had already set for the evening, which allowed the ferocity of the winter chill to surge. The sky was bathed in grey as the snow slowly descended to the ground, allowing it to join the clumps that had fallen the previous day. The air became harsher against her body, and she couldn’t help but shudder as it twirled around her. Despite being a phoenix with a built-in heating feature, Kiara could still be chilled to the bone. If she was in her bird form, she would have been able to get by for the most part thanks to her feathers and natural warmth. Her human body on the other hand was susceptible to the accursed weather. She was able to deal with the cold far better than an average human, but once the freezing weather struck, she too wanted to escape into a cluster of warm blankets.

The only reason she was out in the cold was that she had gone out once again with her beloved, Calliope. Normally, Kiara was the one who’d ask her to hang out during a totally-not-a-date. That time, however, it was Calli who had asked her out viva Discord messages. It wasn’t a fancy date or anything, but as long as they were together, Kiara was content.

They went to see a film based on the life of a rapper Calli liked. She insisted she would have been fine seeing it on her own, but wouldn’t mind if Kiara tagged along. Only if she really wanted to, of course. Kiara would never turn down an invention to hang out with Calli unless she had something important scheduled for that day. As if it was fate, she didn’t. It just so happened that the day Calli had chosen for the outing was one Kiara had mentioned she planned on taking off the previous week. She would deny it over and over again, but Kiara firmly believed it was all according to Calli’s secret plan. It would have been easier if she laid out her intentions clearly, but Kiara didn’t mind. It gave her something cute to giggle at.

After the film, they had walked around the mall that housed the theater. They mostly did some window shopping, but Kiara did buy a few things. The first being an orange sweater she thought was cute. She decided to model it for Calli, who gave her a thumbs-up as she complimented her appearance. The second item was a pair of matching bracelets Kiara insisted they needed to have. They weren’t anything special, for the bands were made with fake leather, and in the center was a small piece of metal. One was colored silver while the other was gold. They both had a small heart inscribed into the center of the metal.

Calli became embarrassed the second Kiara started to wiggle the box enthusiastically in front of her face. She turned her head away with a scowl, but she couldn’t hide the blush that had taken control of her cheeks. At first, Calli insisted she didn’t need anything that tacky or sappy, especially if it implied anything romantic between the two. After a few cute pouts and well-timed whines from Kiara, Calli complied and said she would adopt the second bracelet. She asserted that she wouldn’t wear it, but it made Kiara happy nonetheless. It wasn’t the first time they purchased a matching set, and Kiara felt that it wouldn’t be the last.

Once they concluded their trip around the building, they headed off to dinner. It was a small family dinner located nearby the mall. While the main course was serviceable for what it was, the dessert was fantastic. Perhaps she had ordered the wrong thing, considering Calli enjoyed her meal and didn’t leave a crumb on the plate. The cake though, now that was amazing. She could have eaten slice after slice after slice of it. Perhaps it was the icing, or maybe the variety of fruit spread on top of it, or some magical secret ingredient. She pondered if she could add something similar for her own franchise as she ordered a piece to go.

After they completed their meals with pleased stomachs, the pair started to make their way to the train station. It wasn’t a far walk, it was only about fifteen minutes away. As they strolled through the empty street, they talked about upcoming projects and stream ideas. An occasional flirty line would fly from Kiara’s mouth, which prompted a sigh from Calli. The reaper was skilled in deflecting the flirtatious advances from Kiara, but she would sporadically slip up and flirt back. Sometimes it went well over Calli’s head at the implications of her words, and other times she would take back her words within seconds with a cute blush. On that day, it was the latter that resulted in a barrage of giggles from the phoenix.

Then they arrived at the outdoor train station, the two sat down on an empty green bench. While they sat next to each other, Calli made sure to keep a reasonable distance between their bodies. Kiara placed her small shopping bag down next to the bench, as a small complaint escaped her lips due to the distance between them. The seat was, regrettably, almost as cold as the air that refused to leave them be. Kiara wiggled her head around and saw no other passengers waiting with them. The only companion they had besides each other was the snow that started to lightly fall.

“How long do we have to wait again?” asked Calli as she fidgeted on her side of the bench. Her face was flushed from the cold, her breath visible. She had her gloved hands shoved inside the pockets of her black coat as she nuzzled her chin into her short pink scarf.

“About twenty minutes I think,” replied Kiara as she pulled out her phone to double-check the schedule. She had gone over the schedule before they left the restaurant but figured there was no harm to check again. While she hadn’t mentioned it to Calli, she had missed a train or five due to misreading the schedule while in a hurry. As she scrolled through the app, she continued to notice Calliope squirming next to her.

“We should have just stayed at the restaurant and ran here when the time came,” spoke Calli with a light grumble.

“Then we would have probably missed it and have to wait some more,” said Kiara as she closed the transit app and proceeded to put her phone back into her left pocket.

“We would only be late if you tripped over something,” retorted Calli in a deadpan voice, “Knowing you, you’d find the single pebble on the street and fall face-first into the snow.”

“Hey! I am not that clumsy!” spoke Kiara as she turned her face to her companion.

“Who was the one that somehow managed to fall onto a humidifier?” said Calli with a smug smile.

That comment resulted in Kiara producing a small pout as she lightly bonked her shoulder into Calli’s. She wasn’t wrong, Kiara could find the smallest of things and injure herself off of them. She had died many times to silly accidents due to her being either too clumsy or her attention span wandered at the worst possible time.

“That was just a freak accident thank you! Anyone could have done the exact thing,” retorted Kiara, pout still intact.

Kiara expected a response from her companion, but instead, she was greeted to a fierce burst of cold air that slammed itself into her body. Kiara’s hair was dragged in all directions, blocking her sight, as the wind howled. The cold that clung to her body intensified as a shiver ran up her spine. Had she been a small child, she believed the wind could have blown her away. The gust of wind continued its attack against their bodies for a least twenty seconds. 

Once the wind had its fill of bullying them, Kiara went straight to fixing her hair. After returning it to its proper state, she turned her head over to Calli. She too was adjusting her much longer hair, but Kiara noticed she had started to lightly tremble. Her body slightly moved underneath her coat, but the hands that were tending to her hair was a dead giveaway. They were obviously shaking with every movement they made.

Calli’s human body was far weaker to the cold than her own. Kiara’s form retained some phoenix characteristics, such as her colorful feathers, and natural warmth. Calli’s though, was that of an average human, just with the ability to summon a scythe. She was well aware of that, and she started to think back on the time where Calli reached out to her for a warm hug. She was freezing due to not wearing the proper attire and knew Kiara would warm her up faster than a blanket. A small smile formed on her features from the memory.

Thanks to that recollection, an idea sprung into Kiara’s mind. She was aware that huddling together would produce more body heat. It sadly, wouldn’t erase the cold from their bodies, but it would create some heat which was greatly needed. It would also give her an excuse to move closer to Calli and be snuggled up together like a couple would do in such a situation.

So, Kiara slowly started to scout her body over towards Calli. The reaper didn’t notice the first move, as she was still fixing her hair. On the second one, she didn’t notice again as she started to mess with her small scarf. She wrapped it as tightly as she could around her chin as her hands continued to tremble. On the final one, Calli’s whole body shook as she shoved her hands into her pockets.

 _She’s so cold that she hasn’t noticed a thing. Here I thought I was freezing! Wonder how much worse it is for her?_ thought Kiara as she gazed up at Calli’s flushed face.

Kiara then proceeded to put her plan into action. She slipped her right hand out of her pocket and slowly moved her right arm. Calli hadn’t noticed a thing. She had closed her eyes as she grumbled about how much she wished the train would show up already. Unease started to tumble around inside Kiara’s stomach, but she took in a small breath in an attempt to calm her nerves. She sneaked her right arm into the gap between Calli's left arm and her jacket. Kiara then led her hand towards the pocket Calli’s hand was hiding in and took hold of it. It was deep, and provided enough room for her hand to invade.

“What are you doing Kusotori?” asked Calli in an annoyed voice as she finally caught on to Kiara’s actions. She had opened her eyes and turned her head so they could make eye contact.

“It’s not a lot, but I want to try and share what warmth I do have with you. I saw you started shaking and wanted to help warm you up like before,” explained Kiara as she snuggled into her side and placed her head on Calli’s shoulder. Her coat was cold and wasn’t the comfiest thing to rest on, but it wouldn’t stop her from getting close.

“Kiara…” spoke Calli as her voice softened, “I don’t think it’ll do us much good like this.”

“I know, but still, I don’t want to see you shaking. I can’t really start a fire here,” she explained with a giggle. If they were in the woods or in some other dimension, she could create a small fire pit for the two to sit in front of to warm up. Sadly, she’d just alert everyone in the area which would cause far too many issues. She didn’t want to be arrested and labeled an arsonist for wanting to warm up her love.

“So, I’ll do the next best thing I can do!” she exclaimed happily as she started to nuzzle Calli’s shoulder affectionately, “This will help us warm up, right?”

Silence engulfed the two as Kiara waited for Calli's response. A part of her, deep inside, was worried that Calli would reject her well-meaning act. The longer the silence hung between them, the worse her anxiety began to bubble up. Kiara knew that Calli wouldn’t yell at her, but there were times she couldn’t shake off the worry of rejection.

“Thank you…Kiara,” spoke Calli in a barely audible voice before she squeezed Kiara’s hand. She then entangled her fingers with Kiara’s. Afterward, she dropped her head down slightly to lean against Kiara’s.

Giggles began to emerge from Kiara as she started to nuzzle Calli’s head. The worry in her gut nearly disappeared as a bright smile overtook her features. Being able to snuggle with Calli made her heart swell with glee. While she would have preferred to hold Calli’s hand without being blocked by the gloves, she took what she could get. She loved any form of physical interaction she could get out of Calli. It was so rare in the past, that just being able to hug Calli for five seconds once in forty years was a treat. In their currently shared world, she could make up on all the affection she longed for over the centuries.

They sat like that for a few minutes, enjoying each other’s presence. Calli would occasionally rub her head against Kiara’s or give her hand a strong squeeze. That caused a variety of giggles to seep out of Kiara who was enjoying every second of their snuggle for warmth time. She pondered if they were snuggling as an attempt to warm up or if it was merely an excuse for the two to be affectionate. Kiara was grateful there were no other people waiting for the train. She knew Calli would never act in such a way if they had an audience.

“Calli, am I warm?” asked Kiara cheerfully.

“Not as warm as the last time, but still better than nothing at all,” replied Calli in a soft tone.

“Oh?”

“Well, it’s freezing out here so you’re colder than last time. I am also only getting your side to hug, not your whole body, so even less heat.”

“Is that so?” giggled Kiara as she pulled her head away from Calli’s and turned to face her with a smug grin, “I could sit on your lap, wrap my arms around your shoulders, and snuggle closely into you so you’d have more of me as a heater!”

“Guh, no way! I am never allowing you to do that! That’d be…too much!” she exclaimed as her eyes wavered ever so slightly.

“Oh, come on!” teased Kiara as she inched her face closer to Calli’s, “You’d like it! I would provide a lot more warmth for you that way!”

“I don’t care if it’d be warmer!” yelled Calli with what looked like even redder cheeks as she inched closer to Kiara, “I wouldn’t let something that embarrassing happen!”

Kiara was about to playfully respond as she moved her face closer when something dawned on her. During their heated banter, their faces had gotten awfully close to each other. Too close. She felt her face suddenly warm as her heartbeat began to quicken. Kiara couldn’t stop her focus from shifting away from Calli’s eyes to her soft lips. They were a little chapped from the cold, but they were still extremely kissable. If she just moved in a little more and slightly raise her head, their lips would meet. She wondered if Calli had used any type of lip balm that day, and if her lips would taste like strawberries.

Kiara soon redirected her attention away from the lips she longed to kiss up and back to the rest of Calli’s flushed face. She too seemed to have come to the realization of how close they were, and her eyes couldn’t make up their mind where they wanted to look. They bounced around as she lightly bit her lip. Kiara was surprised she hadn’t pulled her face away in annoyance.

It was at that moment Kiara decided to gather some courage. Instead of pulling away and awkwardly laughing it off, she started to slowly lean in closer. Calli squeezed her hand in response, but she hadn’t jerked away. She stood still, her eyes still bouncing around nervously as she continued to bite her lip. Kiara stopped moving when she reached the point where she could feel Calli’s breath tickling her face, and yet the reaper hadn’t budged. They were so close.

All she had to do was place their lips together and she would get something she longed for. She had kissed Calli’s cheeks so many times, but she truly did want to get her on the lips. Even if would only happen once, she would treasure that sensation for the rest of her existence.

 _Just a little more Kiara, you can do this!_ she thought to herself as she squeezed Calli’s hand. The hand squeezed back as if encouraging her to keep moving.

She was about to close the distance between them when the sudden screech of a train horn blasted nearby. That caused Kiara to jerk her body away and twisted her head around to see their train coming into the station. Her heart was beating so fast, and she suddenly felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her. If that train was just two minutes late, they would have kissed, right?

“Well, umm, there’s…our train,” squeaked Kiara as she felt herself blush a deep crimson.

“Y-yeah…that’ll warm us up real fast…” replied the just as embarrassed Calli as she gave Kiara’s hand another squeeze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, was it cute? I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and of course, the tease at the end. I want to give a big thanks to all you readers and commentators! I really appreciate it! 
> 
> Also, shameless plugin here, if anyone cares, of course, my twitter is @Winterbunny12


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